Reese Kaplan -- Be Thankful, Be Wary, Be Excited

During the Thanksgiving weekend some of us actually do spend some time pondering those aspects of life for which we are genuinely grateful.  For some it is health, for some it is the income we generate from our jobs or investments, for some of us it is the closeness of family (many of whom we could not see during 2020 due to the pandemic), and for us Mets fans it is the transition to a new ownership regime for the troubled franchise over which we’ve tolerated incompetence, miserliness, xenophobia, and third tier personnel in all aspects of the team.

Personally I spent some time evaluating what has happened, what is happening and what should be happening for the future of the team.  Obviously the one-way exit door to the Wilpons and the red carpet laid at the entrance door to Steve Cohen was the big thing.  That major transition was followed swiftly by a clean sweep of the front office and the return of Sandy Alderson to help Mr. Cohen shape the future of the ballclub.  

Of course, what is happening is truly unsettling.  First we hear other baseball teams not mysterious applied the brakes when it came to allowing their front office personnel who are under contract to have permission to interview with the deep pocketed NY Mets.  At first I got the “same old, same old” feeling of familiarity that arose regularly during the Wilpon era.  It was another one of those poor Mets efforts at trying to do something and landing face down, squarely on their schnozzes.  

However, the more I thought about it, a certain clarity emerged that was vastly different from what we felt during the Wilpon era.  Back then (oh, it feels so great to refer to that time period historically like the Plague), it was pretty obvious that other teams really didn’t care about the Mets because they were full of confidence that the team would shoot itself in the foot again and again by bidding on the wrong players, hiring the wrong front office personnel and retaining losing managers.  

All of the sudden the Mets have...what is it they call it...oh yeah, CREDIBILITY.  The fact that they have someone who has the financial wherewithal and the desire to produce a winning team.  Aiding and abetting this endeavor would be foolish, hence other team owners were not anxious to allow the Mets to do what needs to be done.  If they did, then the Mets might actually make strides into the winning side of the ledger.

So the Mets announce they’re giving up on the big kahuna front office honcho and instead will have Sandy Alderson take that role and instead consider who would become a GM for them now and eventually take over for Alderson once he chooses to retire (or his health forces him to do so).  Candidates for this role are not exactly causing social distancing concerns as many who are under current contract are not coming forward, so it’s unclear who will get that role with the Mets.  

Part of me is anxious for them to uncover some experienced gem of a GM who has not had the budget nor the ownership cooperation elsewhere to spread his (or her) wings.  There is something to be said for a deep resume filled with historical proof of the ability to get things done.

Then there is the part of me who would embrace someone like former Mets pitcher Chris Young for bringing fresh ideas into the realm.  After all, he’s had experience at the major league front office level, he’s an Ivy League graduate, he’s played the game, and, more importantly, he still would have Sandy Alderson (a very experienced GM) there to help him in any aspects with which he didn’t have a resume full of performance history.  

My hope is that the week following the holiday will be filled with the short list of candidates brought in for a second interview.  Then by Monday, December 7th a new person will be operating under the Cohen bannership as the virtual Winter Meetings begin for the period of December 7-10th.  Ideally I’d like the hiring decision done by Friday, December 4th in order for there to be at least a weekend of preparation before it begins, but the worst case scenario isn’t really all that bad with the veteran Sandy Alderson able to sit in for the Mets if they have not yet made a GM decision.  

The future is the part that is both exciting and scary.  Already other major league teams have inked free agents.  No, the top five or so have not yet picked up a pen and applied it to paper, but credible pitcher Charlie Morton and credible catcher James McCann already have new jobs.  The inaction by the Mets is concerning but not necessarily Valium-worthy as the big choices are still out there and a huge number of contract non-tenders makes a great many options available.  

Ideally the Mets will wait until they have a GM in fold to begin their major push for filling out the 2021 roster, but they’d better not wait too long, otherwise there will be more sightings of the likes of James Loney, Billy Hamilton and players of that ilk when they are all that’s left seeing jobs.  There is definitely some nervousness on my part until a GM is hired and the club feels as if it can begin to develop and execute a plan for competitive ascendency.  Until then, I’m keeping my antacids and painkillers handy.